Building permits, zoning and septic rules in the Village of Webster, Wisconsin

At a glance

Building permit

Required from the Village Clerk-Treasurer before work starts¹

Building code

State dwelling code (SPS 320 to SPS 325) adopted by the village⁵

Zoning

Village zoning districts, not county general zoning²³

Septic

Prohibited where village sewer serves the property; elsewhere ask Burnett County Land Services⁴⁶

Driveways

Public Works permit for driveways crossing a sidewalk or curb⁷

Owner-builder

State rules let an owner-occupant take out UDC permits⁸

Who to call

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 15, 2026.

Do you need a building permit in the Village of Webster, WI?

Yes. The Village of Webster requires a building permit from the Village Clerk-Treasurer before a building is erected or ground is broken¹. The permit also covers enlargements, alterations, heating or ventilating installations, signs, moving and razing¹. Minor repairs valued at less than $2,000 may be authorized without a building permit, but only if they do not change occupancy, area, structural strength, fire protection, exits, light or ventilation¹.

For a new one- or two-family house, Webster adopts the state dwelling code, Wisconsin Administrative Code chapters SPS 320 to SPS 325⁵. The state requires inspections at each phase of construction⁹. Wisconsin also lets the owner who will occupy the home take out the construction and erosion-control permits instead of hiring a certified contractor⁸. We could not confirm whether the village adds its own owner-builder rules, so ask the village office.

Who issues building permits in Webster, and how do you reach them?

The Webster Village Clerk-Treasurer issues building permits¹. The application is written, on a form the Clerk-Treasurer furnishes, and names the owner, the legal description of the land, the designer and the intended use¹⁰. A residential structure must abut a dedicated street, and issuing a residential permit also depends on sewer, water, grading and graveling in the servicing streets and proof of electrical-hookup payment¹⁰.

Call the village office at (715) 866-4211¹¹. The village lists REM Inspecting LLC as its building inspector¹². Burnett County does not issue Webster's building permits; its Land Services office serves unincorporated land and the septic questions below.

Does Webster have zoning, and what does it mean for homes and RVs?

Yes. Webster has its own zoning chapter with eight districts: R-1 Single-Family Residential, R-2 Multifamily Residential, C-1 General Commercial, C-2 Highway Commercial, I-1 General Industrial, A-1 Agricultural and Forestry, C Conservancy and PUD Planned Unit Development². Burnett County's own page states that villages are exempt from county general zoning³, so the village, not the county, decides what a lot inside Webster may be used for.

We could not confirm Webster's minimum lot sizes, setbacks, minimum dwelling size, tiny-home rules or RV-occupancy rules. Do not assume a lot in Webster can host an RV or a tiny home as a residence; ask the village office which district the parcel is in and what that district allows.

How do septic permits work inside Webster?

The village sewer code prohibits septic tanks, holding tanks and any private sewage disposal system within the area of the village served by the sewerage system⁴. A lot on village sewer connects to the sewer; it does not get a septic system.

For a parcel the village sewer does not serve, we could not confirm who issues the septic permit inside village limits. Burnett County Land Services issues sanitary permits and inspects sewer-system installations across the county¹³¹⁴, so it is the first office to call. Ask the village office, too, whether a given lot is inside the sewer service area, and confirm before you buy a lot with a well and septic plan.

Building a home in Webster: the steps, in order

1. Ask the village office at (715) 866-4211 which zoning district the parcel is in and whether village sewer serves it¹¹².
2. Confirm the lot abuts a dedicated street and that sewer, water, grading and graveling are in place on the servicing streets¹⁰.
3. File the written building permit application with the Village Clerk-Treasurer¹⁰.
4. If a driveway will cross a sidewalk or curb, get a Director of Public Works permit; residential openings must be at least 10 feet wide at the property line⁷.
5. Build to the adopted state dwelling code and call for the required inspections: footings, foundation, rough, insulation and final⁵¹⁵.
6. Ask the village office whether a certificate of occupancy applies; Wisconsin requires a final inspection before occupancy¹⁶.

What stays with Burnett County, and what to check before you buy

Burnett County's zoning and land-use permits apply to unincorporated land, not inside the village¹⁷. If a parcel is outside Webster's limits, use the Burnett County page instead. County rules still reach shoreland and floodplain land, and the county zoning division administers state floodplain, wetland, shoreland and subdivision regulations¹⁸.

We could not confirm whether floodplain, well or subdivision rules apply to a specific lot inside Webster, so check a parcel's flood status and well options with the village office before you close. Burnett County's effective property tax rate is about 1%¹⁹, and the median property tax bill is $2,052 a year²⁰.

Watch-outs

• Searches for "Webster" often return Webster, New York or Webster, Massachusetts; this guide covers only the Village of Webster in Burnett County, Wisconsin¹.
• A county land-use permit is separate from a village building permit, but villages are exempt from Burnett County general zoning, so confirm which applies before you apply³.
• We could not confirm RV occupancy, tiny-home, accessory-dwelling, lot-size or setback rules inside Webster; the village office at (715) 866-4211 can say what applies to a specific parcel¹¹.

Sources

1. Chapter 112: Building Construction - Village of Webster, WI (Village of Webster), quoted and re-checked
2. Chapter 298: Zoning - Village of Webster, WI (Village of Webster), quoted and re-checked
3. Zoning/Land Use Ordinance Violation Enforcement Policy, quoted and re-checked
4. Chapter 240: Sewers - Village of Webster, WI (Village of Webster), quoted and re-checked
5. Chapter 112: Building Construction - Village of Webster, WI (Village of Webster), quoted and re-checked
6. Private Sewage Systems, quoted and re-checked
7. Chapter 132: Driveways - Village of Webster, WI (Village of Webster), quoted and re-checked
8. Wisconsin’s Uniform Dwelling Code, quoted and re-checked
9. Wisconsin’s Uniform Dwelling Code (Wisconsin statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
10. Chapter 112: Building Construction - Village of Webster, WI (Village of Webster), quoted and re-checked
11. Village of Webster Clerk-Treasurer's office (websterwisconsin.com)
12. Village building inspector (REM Inspecting LLC) (websterwisconsin.com)
13. Zoning Division, quoted and re-checked
14. Burnett County Land Services/Zoning (burnettcountywi.gov)
15. UDC (Uniform Dwelling Code / One- and Two-Family Dwellings), quoted and re-checked
16. Wisconsin’s Uniform Dwelling Code, quoted and re-checked
17. Chapter 30 Land Use, quoted and re-checked
18. Zoning Division, quoted and re-checked
19. Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data
20. Median property tax bill: Bolthole Index county data

Written October 15, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.